At London’s original Japanese food hall in Leicester Square, and sister sites Ichiba at Westfield London and Japan Centre Westfield Stratford City.

They have an exclusive and perfect range of cherry blossom products to enjoy hanami this year running 1st – 30th April.

In Japan, cherry blossoms are celebrated with ‘hanami’, the traditional custom of celebrating spring and the beauty of the cherry blossom trees. Friends and family gather together and sit beneath the lovely trees with sake and food.

Anyone looking for an Instagram moment can head to Ichiba Westfield London White City throughout Cherry Blossom season. Two-metre-tall cherry blossom trees and giant floral displays will flank the entrance and brighten up the insides of the store to get you in the mood for all things spring.

In addition, Ichiba visitors on Sat 13 April can take part in a free Cherry Blossom Origami Workshop. Oragami is a traditional Japanese craft of paper folding, using no scissors or glue. Create your own cherry blossom origami to take home with you in this free drop-in workshop (12 – 4pm).

All three sites have delicious made-to-order sushi platters. You can place your order online, the day before collection and host your own hanami picnic with friends and family.

For more picnic ideas or to enjoy these Japanese spring highlights at home, browse and select your hanami treats at Japan Centre in Leicester Square and Ichiba Westfield London White City and Japan Centre Westfield Stratford City, or order online for nationwide delivery.

Cherry Blossom Season Products:

Frozen Kitakyushokuhin Sakuramochi Cherry Blossom Rice Cake

A Japanese mochi rice cake which was traditionally enjoyed at Hanami flower-viewing picnics. This luxuriously soft sakura mochi rice cake features a sweet anko red bean paste filling, wrapped in the delicately salty bite of cherry tree leaf. Uniquely pounded using chunky Domyojiko rice powder, a speciality of Kansai region, this steamed and dried rice cake has a satisfyingly supple and sticky rice-pudding texture that makes its rich red bean paste centre all the more indulgent to savour. Decorated with a pickled cherry tree leaf carefully steeped in salty brine, this pink mochi captures the uplifting tang of sakura cherry blossom in an exquisite seasonal sweet. £2.

Hanami Heaven mochi donut – in-store only

Created specially for cherry blossom season, the Hanami Heaven donut has a sweet floral blossom glaze, with sakura powder, pistachio nuts and edible blossom decorations. Available for a limited period only at Japan Centre Leicester Square. £3.99.

Tanaka Ume Plum & Shiso Perilla Leaf Soft Furikake Rice Seasoning (Umeshiso)

Furikake rice seasoning is a juicy plum & tangy perilla seasoning. Sliced bigger and dried for shorter periods to offer a fresher, chewier texture, the soft fruitiness of this ume plum and shiso perilla leaf furikake rice seasoning squeezes sweet and salty flavours into your rice portions and more. Preserved in salt and vinegar, the soft chunk plum and shredded perilla leaf in this furikake give your food a more refreshing taste and appearance, adding a natural pink colour. A wonderful balance of sour and sweet to flavour onigiri rice balls, bentos and even salads. £2.35

Gekkeikan Umeshu Plum Wine

Made with fully ripened plums. The umeshu plum wine in this glass bottle has been made using fully ripened nanko ume plums, which are well known for their peach-like sweet aroma and a flavour completely free of any bitterness. Deliciously sweet and fragrant. Great as an aperitif that you can enjoy under the cherry blossoms, as well as fantastic in cocktails or served on the rocks. £16.79

Marui Shokuhin Cherry Blossom Tea

Celebrate new beginnings with this cherry blossom tea. Made by pickling and drying mid to late spring cherry blossoms, all you need to do is drop a couple of these blossoms into a cup of hot water and watch the blossoms unfurl. This tea is traditionally drunk at weddings and other occasions where new beginnings are to be celebrated, and it is slightly salty in flavour. £3.85

Suntory Kanade Sakura Flavoured Craft Liqueur

For a sweet alcoholic tweet to enjoy under the cherry blossoms with your picnic, you can pick up this uniquely blended drink made from Sakura cherry blossoms and leaves themselves. This refined sake offers a floral palate with an exquisite sharpness. It is made by soaking the fully-bloomed petals and leaves into sake over long periods, to result in their gentle bouquet of flavours and fragrances becoming infused in this liqueur. £33.

Origami cherry blossom event:

Saturday 13 April, 12 – 4pm – drop in. Free of charge

Ichiba Westfield London White City

About Japan Centre

Founded in 1976 in London, Japan Centre is one of the largest and most influential Japanese stores in Europe. With a passion for supplying the best authentic goods, the Japan Centre has a range of over 3,000 products spanning food, drink, and lifestyle. In-store experts make Japanese sushi and hot souzai, and the fishmonger and butcher counters serve fresh produce cut the traditional Japanese way. The in-store bakery serves a large selection of handmade and hard to find Japanese pastries and breads, which are baked daily.

In 2005 Japan Centre launched an online store, to bring a slice of Japan to those outside of London and the UK with over 3,000 Japanese and Asian products sourced straight from Japan and across Asia, making it the number one destination for those interested in the very best of Japanese & Asian food and culture.

Japan Centre now has three food halls in Leicester Square, Westfield White City and Stratford, where it sells a plethora of authentic Japanese food ingredients and food to go stands, alongside a huge selection of sake, and is expanding into the beauty and lifestyle area with cookbooks, crockery and Japanese skincare products. The Leicester Square branch opened London’s first mochi bar in 2021, where it sells all things mochi including doughnuts, cookies, pan bread, ice cream, daifuku and dango.

The food halls have also been expanding in recent years. At Westfield White City, the brand launched a Sake & Oyster Bar in April 2022 to highlight how the umami flavours complement each other.

For those looking for a slice of authentic Japanese cuisine outside of the home, Japan Centre Group has a number of restaurant offerings; Shoryu – Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen specialists and Ramen Yokocho – a ramen bar specializing in regional ramen from across Japan and Ichiba – Europe’s largest Japanese food hall.